Associate a preferred substitution item to an item

A preferred substitute is an item that must be fulfilled prior to fulfilling the original item, in an order.

About this task

The system verifies and fulfills the order by shipping the preferred substitute item even when the original item is available. For example, if an order is placed for Item1, and the preferred substitute is Item2, then Item2 is depleted prior to shipping Item1.

Note: You cannot use a tag-controlled item as a preferred substitute.

You can associate a preferred substitution item to an item from the Item Associations screen.

To associate a preferred substitution item to an item:

Procedure

  1. Navigate to the Items Associations screen. To navigate to the Item Association screen, perform the following steps:
    1. Log in to Sterling™ Business Center as an Item Administrator.
    2. The application home page is displayed. Click the Products tab.
    3. From the Products home page, click Find Item in the Catalog dashlet.
    4. From the Item Search screen that is displayed, enter the search criteria, and then click Search to view a list of all the available items. Alternatively, use either the Basic Search or the Advanced Search option to narrow down the list of items displayed.
    5. In the Items panel that is displayed, click the Item ID hyperlink. Alternatively, double-click the row containing the Item ID.
    6. The Primary Information screen is displayed. In the Related Tasks panel, click Manage Preferred Substitutions.

      The Items Associations screen is displayed.

  2. In the Items area that is displayed, click Add.
  3. The Add Association Item dialog box is displayed. Perform the following steps:
    1. In the Item ID* box, click the Search icon to search for an Item ID. The Basic Item Search dialog box is displayed. Enter the search criteria, and click Search to view the list of available items. You can use either the Basic Search or Advanced Search option to narrow down the list of items displayed. In the search results list that is displayed, select the item that you want to associate as an alternative item, and click Select.
      Note: A bundle item cannot be associated to any other item.
    2. Select an Effective Start Date*. Click the Calendar icon to view the calendar, and select a date. The effective start date is the date from which the association becomes active.
    3. Select an Effective End Date*. Click the Calendar icon to view the calendar, and select a date. The effective end date is the date until which the association remains active.
    4. In the Associated Quantity* text box, enter the quantity of the associated item that is relevant to this association.
    5. In the Priority field, enter the priority of the associated item. An association with the highest priority is displayed first in the list of associations displayed in Web channel application.
    6. Click Save to save the details, and close the dialog box.

      Notes:

    7. * indicates that the field is mandatory.
    8. Items with the highest priority are considered first when the item is automatically substituted during scheduling.

      The preferred substitution item is associated to the item.